Disney Reveals Blu-ray 3D Releases For 2011

Have you dreamed of one day watching Belle and the Beast waltz beneath a massive chandelier or a herd of wildebeests nearly stomp young Simba to death in glorious 3D on the big screen? Well, that fantasy will come half true – both Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King will be released in Blu-ray 3D in 2011.

Walt Disney Pictures announced their slate of Blu-ray 3D releases for this year, which includes those two 2D-animated hits, alongside more recent, digitally-created features like Chicken Little and Meet the Robinsons.

Last summer Disney released the teaser trailer for its planned theatrical re-release of Beauty and the Beast in 3D and announced their intention to do the same with The Lion King. Word got out a while ago that the studio had scrapped said plans after the early results of the post-conversion process on the hand-drawn films proved to be less than satisfactory. Apparently, the Mouse House’s stereoscopic technicians have been much more successful in converting the movies to the third dimension for Blu-ray.

No less than fifteen titles under the Disney banner will be, to paraphrase the studio, “meticulously dimensionalized” for Blu-ray 3D this year, including last year’s Tangled and TRON: Legacy, and previous 3D titles like Bolt and G-Force.

'TRON: Legacy' will (naturally) be released in Blu-ray 3D.

Computer-animated fare can be readily converted into the 3D format as it requires a relatively simpler rendering of each individual film frame – compared to the process for converting live-action footage that was not shot using 3D camera rigs. 2D or traditional animation is a trickier proposition when it comes to being converted into 3D, as the visuals are less suited for the format and tend to turn out more blurred and disproportionate as a result.

The Nightmare Before Christmas is also arriving on Blu-ray 3D this year and the cult stop-motion picture had a successful run in theaters as a 3D feature that was re-released every October for a couple years in a row. Nightmare benefits from the immersive atmosphere of 3D as it was shot in such a fashion that the camera often seems to be exploring the Tim Burton-designed worlds of Halloween Town and the Christmas land.

Both Beauty and the Beast and Lion King have their share of moments that could look all the more impressive when fully realized in three dimensions – specifically, the previously referenced “Beauty and the Beast” musical sequence and the wildebeest stampede scene. We’ll have to wait and see whether the films as a whole benefit from being viewed in 3D on home television screens.

Depending on the success of these classic animated features on Blu-ray 3D, Disney may well go ahead and release many more entries from its beloved cartoon vault. It’s entirely possible that flicks like Aladdin and The Little Mermaid or even much older titles like Snow White and Fantasia could be made available for viewing in the format as well.

But is that something you’re really interested in seeing? Sound off in the comments section below.

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Little Monster 4 years ago

I’m not really into 3D BD. I have CORALINE in 3D, but it’s annoying when I watch it that way. IMO, 3D is best when it’s on a big screen like in the theaters, not for home television. Having said that, I’m very much looking forward to THE LION KING in 3D.

In my opinion, those that complain have not figured out how to watch it. Unlike a 2D “picture” where you can look everywhere on the screen since the camera’s view is irrelevant (you are looking at a flat surface, the secret to 3D is that you must look where the camera is pointed (usually the middle of the screen). This means that, just like in real life, things in your peripheral vision may appear blurry or not in 3D.

When I watch peeople watching 3D for the first time, they are swirling their eyes all around. Once you relax and look where the camera is pointed, you will become immersed. It is VERY different than 2D and that is what it is SUPPOSED to be. A new realism…

Once you learn this trick and watch at home, the emotional impact of 3D is truly amazing.

The Lion King is without question one the best animated moives ever, regardless of which format. In fact I find it even now to be superior to most of Pixar’s and Dreamworks efforts. Everything in it is practically pitch perfect, mixing in ingredients of both grand scale epic and entertaining comedy. It was possibly the best film of 1994 and since the animated category didn’t exist back then, it certainly should’ve toppled Forrest Gump for best film oscar that year.

I quite like both Beauty & the Beast as well as The Lion King, but don’t really feel a need to see either in 3D.

That said, I suppose Lion King stands to benefit more from 3D – especially in scenes like the Opening coronation of Simba, the wildebeest stampede, and possibly even the sequence in which the spirit of Mufasa appears in the clouds.

I have the lion king in dvd and I am in no way interested in buying it againa and then buying ablu ray player. My $ is valuable and the only way I will buy a blu ray is if dvds are no longer made. I have an enormous collection of dvds and I have to plans to rebuy them in a different format. Sorry billion dollar corporations. You’re not getting this one any time soon

Looking forward to “Nightmare” on BD. and FYI….I will NOT be purchasing TRON on BD. It was lacking and un like the orginal ( were you felt you were in the “Grid” some 28 byears ago on the big screen). This version was just really bland except for the first act and the beautiful Olivia Wilde. Tech was awesome, but really fell apart at the end.

To the people who are saying that hate 3D… i tend to agree with you but it all depends on the type of 3D. If the movie was shot in 3D then it’s quite good but if it’s post-production 3D then i hate the 3D….

Perhaps buy I like having that option to see an older movie in 3d if I would like. These are going to be done for home 3d anyway, so the 2d of the same movie will be on the shelf as well. So I don’t see the problem.

I love a good theatrical 3D experience, but 3D television is awful. It is such a minimal 3D that it doesn’t add to the film. Just put on some lightly tinted sunglasses and watch a movie on a normal TV and you’re essentially duplicating the 3D home viewing experience.

As a 3DTV owner, I have had a great experience with at-home 3D. 3D content (Blu-ray 3D) does give you quite some depth and does pop out of the screen as it does in theaters. It is definitely an overall different viewing experience than in the theaters, but I have found it to be more personal, and at times, more enjoyable. I’ve found that the clarity makes me feel that I’m not even looking at a screen and I’m just watching the events unfold right before my eyes. Also, I feel, the effectiveness depends on the size of one’s TV as well.

Now if you were referring to the 2D-to-3D conversion found on Samsung televisions, I could understand what you mean and I am sorry for the misunderstanding.

I’ve got a great idea! Let’s colorize Citizen Kane. Then we can chop 40% of the frame off so it’ll be full anamorphic widescreen. We can remaster the score to make it 7.1 surround sound, THEN we can cut up Wells’ original shots to make them look like a pop-up book on our $3000 3D TVs! It’ll be like seeing it for the very first time!

I’m not rebuying old films especially Star Wars and Disney films. I will only support new films that are good. Hollywood has been coasting for too long. She has become an obese whore for money. I refuse to be an enabler.

I started thinking about this 3D phenomenon. I wondered if animation studios really want to have to put their movies in 3D or if they feel forced by their corporate overlords. Then I realized it is a similar issue to remastered digital surround soundtracks.
If given the option, how many people choose the original mono/stereo tracks on these older movies on DVD? My guess would be a small percentage.
When (if?) 3D achieves critical mass, it will probably be the same way. So it makes financial sense to give the people the option. I know the purists have a different opinion.

Definitely there are a good number of people out there that like 3d. I think it is great for those who like 3d to now have that option on a certain number of movies coming out now. Still where I live you can go see all these 3d movies at the theater in 2d and 3d. Now it will probably get to the point of being more difficult to do this since 1 screen has to accommodate so many people at once, but for home there will never be a problem to have both formats to please everyone.

Some movies are fun to watch in 3D- Alice in Wonderland, Toy Story 2, Despicable Me. Some movies are a headache and pointless to watch in 3D – Thor, Green Lantern, and Avatar. However, I still believe that 3D is just a toy (gimmick) and does not really work for serious movie viewing. Somehow our brains and eyes do not like this format for very long. I would love to read a good research paper on why.

I was a 3D/blu-ray pessimist/hater for the past few years. I just bought a new TV that had 3D already on it (although I thought I’d never use it). There was 3D demo so I used the 3D glasses that came with it just to have fun. I ended up thinking it was really cool and actually enjoy watching 3D movies at home rather than in a theater. I picked up a 3D blu ray player the following day along with The Lion King 3D and it is AWESOME. I can’t wait to show the rest of my family how cool it looks. Being only 24, those Disney movies are my childhood. I’d love to see all of them remade in 3D and I’d probably buy every one.